1. Field of the Invention
This invention is directed to a device for stabilizing fifth wheel recreational vehicles when the cab portion of the vehicle is separated from the trailer portion.
2. Description of the Prior Art
When the cab of a fifth wheel recreational vehicle is separated from the trailer, there is a cantilever overhang section at the cab end of the trailer which constitutes part of the living quarters of the trailer. The trailer is normally supported by the tires and extension rods which are lowered from the body of the trailer after separation of the cab vehicle. The cantilever overhang section, however, is subject to pitching, yawing, and rolling moments induced by wind forces acting against the trailer and by dynamic forces acting within the trailer such as an individual or individuals merely walking. Such forces will induce reactive forces which are noncoplaner, thereby producing pitching, yawing, and rolling moments in the cantilever overhang at the cab end of the vehicle. To comfortably utilize the living quarters contained in the cantilever portion various forms of stabilizer devices have been used in the prior art.
In order to use the present types of stabilizing devices for fifth wheel vehicles, it was necessary to first lift or jack-up the cantilever section by applying a force to the strike plate on the underside of the cantilever section. Thereafter a pair of stabilizing struts connected at their lower ends by a continuous chain link and unconnected at their upper ends are employed to brace the trailer. The upper end of each stabilizing strut contains a horizontal flange member rigidly attached to the strut and a verticle restraint member also rigidly attached to the strut forming an "L" shaped end for bearing against the strike plate housing extending from the underside of the cantilever section. Installation of the struts requires that the "L" shaped strut ends are positioned against the strike plate housing before the jack device is lowered. When the jack is lowered, the lower ends of the strut members which are adapted for relative sliding movement across the support surface move until the continuous chain link is in tension. The strut members are then in compression thereby forming a triangular type brace which stabilizes the cantilever overhang of the trailer vehicle. In order to remove the strut members, the cantilever section must be lifted or jacked up to relieve the compressive loading on the struts. This type of stabilizer has the inherent disadvantage of requiring the trailer to be lifted or jacked up before it can be used and also requires the use of a lift or jack device at the time of removal. A further and more limiting disadvantage is that these types of stabilizers do not work on uneven ground terrain because of the rigid "L" shaped end of the struts.
Trailer stabilizing devices having a force means to draw the strut members or stabilizing legs toward one another are known in the prior art. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,933,372, 3,690,964 and 3,801,128, demonstrate a force means interconnecting stabilizing legs which are pivotedly mounted to the underside of a trailer. As disclosed in the above identified patents, the support legs have an operative position extending downward and outward from the trailer and a raised position extending parallel to the underside of the trailer. When in the raised position, the support legs engage a bracket means which holds the leg assembly in a raised position. The force means holds the leg assembly in the bracket means when the legs are in the retracted position. This type of stabilizing device, however was designed to be permanently carried on the underside of a conventional trailer and not for use with a fifth wheel trailer vehicle.
The prior art also shows in U.S. Pat. No. 2,924,463 a trailer frame support which consists of a pair of struts used to support the forward end of a trailer frame to prevent lateral shifting thereof. A tension element extends between the projecting ends of the struts to prevent separation after the struts are loaded. The struts are separately mounted to the trailer frame and the frame is lowered by a crank which results in a tensioning of the tension element because of increased loading on the struts.